Somalia
Africa · Mogadishu · SO
Somalia is the vast country of the Horn of Africa, the nation of the long Indian Ocean coast and the arid interior that stretches from the Gulf of Aden of the north to the great plains of the south of the Horn. It is the land of the ancient trade of the incense and the ivory, of the seafaring capital of the Mogadishu, of the volcanic highlands and the ruins of the medieval sultanates, and of the nomadic pastoral world of the camel country of the interior. Long shattered by the chaos of the failed state and the decades of the war, the country is slowly emerging again, and its extraordinary coastline, its stone cities, its islands and the fierce pride of its people set the scene of one of the least visited and most misunderstood lands of Africa. Beautiful, harsh and profoundly resilient, Somalia is the storied frontier of the Indian Ocean world.
Overview
Somalia is a country in Africa. Its capital is Mogadishu and the international dialling code is +252. Languages commonly used in everyday life here include Somali and Arabic. Local currency is the Somali Shilling (SOS). We also list 1 city in Somalia: Mogadishu.
The Capital of the Mogadishu and the Beaches of the Lido
The capital of the Mogadishu, the sprawling white city of the southern coast of the country that has traded with the ships of the Indian Ocean for more than a thousand years, is the ancient and the modern heart of the Somali world. The historic quarter of the capital, with its whitewashed mosques, its coral stone houses and the ruins of the medieval town that the old Arab geographers knew, cling to the coast and the port of the city, while the rebuilt districts, with their markets, their onion-domed modern mosque and their newly rising towers, carry the fragile recovery of the city. The celebrated beach of the Lido, the long stretch of the white sand of the Indian Ocean shore of the capital, and the everyday life of the cafés and the crowds of the city give the visitor the extraordinary, resilient, fiercely proud pulse of the Somali capital.
The Coast of the North and the Reefs of the Indian Ocean
The coasts of the country, the long, beautiful and inaccessible shorelines of the Indian Ocean and the Gulf of Aden that frame the Horn, hold the extraordinary marine world of the Somali seas. The reefs and the waters of the north-east coast, from the shallow coral gardens of the coastal beaches to the enormous banks of the deep offshore, are among the least fished and the least explored of the world's seas, with the turtles, the mantas and the great whales of the ocean. The ports and the towns of the coast, from the ancient northern trading cities with their dhows and incense cargoes to the fishing villages of the shore, carry the maritime life of the country, and the long, empty, stunning beaches of the Somali coast, with their dunes and their shipwrecks, complete the picture of the great marine frontier of the Horn.
The Cities of the Stone and the Ruins of the Medieval Land
The historic cities of the country, the stone towns and the ruins of the medieval sultanates that the trade of the Indian Ocean built along the coasts and the interior caravan routes, hold the deep heritage of the Somali land. The ancient port of the Zeila on the Gulf of Aden, now half-buried in the sand, and the fortified hill towns of the region, from the stone maze of the old Mogadishu to the ruined capitals of the sultanates of the south, preserve the towers, the mosques and the great cisterns of the medieval mercantile world. The tombs and the shrines of the holy men of the region, the inscriptions of the old Arab generations and the excavated treasures of the ancient trade of the towns complete the picture of a civilisation of the merchants and the scholars that the world has almost entirely forgotten.
The Nomads of the Interior and the Livestock of the Plains
The interior of the country, the enormous plateau of the semidesert, the thornbush plains and the great seasonal streams that spread across the middle of the Horn, is the world of the pastoral peoples of Somalia, the camel herders and the nomads of the vast grazing lands of the region. The culture of the nomads, the great lineages and the clans of the interior, the portable grass-mat huts and the poetry of the oral traditions, carry the deep social fabric of the Somali nation, and the water points and the stays of the herds between the rains set the rhythm of the seasonal movement. The livestock of the country, the sheep, the goats and above all the camels of the legendary caravan trade that still crosses the plains to the coastal markets, gives the living picture of the last great camel culture of the African continent.
The Islands of the North and the Mariners of the Region
The islands of the country, the scattered groups and the little sultanates of the sea that lie off the coasts of the northern Horn, hold the most remote and the most romantic corners of the Somali maritime world. The islands of the region off the northern coast, the chains of the low coral islets and the anchorage of the historic pirate trade and the wealth of the Indian Ocean, shelter the dugongs, the nesting seabirds and the turtles of the protected waters, and the villages of the islands, with their dhows, their fishing and their salt and pearls of the trade, continue the seafaring life of the Horn. The sailing culture of the region, the hardy boats of the ocean that still carry the goods and the people between the ports and the islands of the coast, completes the picture of the great, storied maritime people of the Somali seas.
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- Capital
- Mogadishu
- Currency
- Somali Shilling (SOS)
- Languages
- Somali, Arabic
- Calling code
- +252
- Internet TLD
- so
Entry requirements
Check who can enter →See which passports travel visa-free or need a visa to enter Somalia.
Cities (1)
All cities →Frequently asked questions
What is the capital of Somalia?
Mogadishu is the capital of Somalia, and the country sits in Africa.
What currency is used in Somalia?
You pay with Somali Shilling (SOS) in Somalia. Exchange rates move day to day, so check the current rate before you change money or use your card abroad.
Which languages do people speak in Somalia?
The languages we list for Somalia are Somali and Arabic. A couple of greetings in the local language go a long way when you travel, even in cities where another language is widely used.
What is the international dialling code for Somalia?
The dialling code for Somalia is +252 — keep the plus sign when you save the number.
Which cities in Somalia do you cover?
Our guide lists 1 city for Somalia: Mogadishu (capital).